Twitter user WABetaInfo, which has been a reliable source of information in the past, said users should remove the blocked contact from their address book and mute the contact's chat

HOW CAN YOU SPOT THE WHATSAPP TEXT BOMB AND WHAT SHOULD YOU DO IF YOU GET IT?

How do you spot the text bomb?

WhatsApp users are being warned about a new text bomb that can cause their handset to freeze.

The message reads: 'This is very interesting (emoji)…Read more.'

The emoji in question is the face with tears of joy - or crying while laughing - emoji.

A second variation is said to contain the words ‘if you touch the black point then your WhatsApp will hang’, followed by an image of a black dot.

How is the text bomb being spread?

The message is being shared on the Pastebin code repository, meaning anyone can copy and paste it then spread it via the messaging app.

What should you do if you are sent it?

Anyone who is sent either text bomb is advised to delete the message in question.

The safest way to do this without triggering it is to delete the whole conversation thread, rather than the individual message.

What happens if you do activate it?

Clicking on either the 'read more' section or the black dot in these messages will activate the bug.

If you have been unlucky enough to activate it, this may cause WhatsApp to crash or even your whole device to freeze.

This will require a full system reboot - usually achieved by holding down the power button on your handset until a restart option appears, or powering down then powering back up if this doesn't happen.

In February, a bug was discovered that sends Apple iPhones, iPads and Macs into a frenzy thanks to a single character from a language used in India.

Opening a message containing the Telugu language character is enough to crash iOS Springboard, the system app which manages the device's home screen.

Apple gadgets running iOS 11.2.5 or macOS, are susceptible to the bug, which disables access to iMessages.